The gist of the event

This event is about how Bishop Eaton came to the Grace Welcome Center during the shooting of Jacob Blake. Bishop Eaton wanted to confront racism. This event was to confront racism and race for the people. Some people came to speak about things that have happened to them because of the color of their skin. Some of the guest speakers talked about how we should make the community better and how people need to do better.

Who was involved? How were they were involved?

Sonja Wolfe, a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church: Spoke about her experiences with racism and how she feels about it. She shared about how she was afraid of policemen even though her father is a policeman in Chicago and she was in the military. She was taught to fear or to know how to act around policemen.

Rev. Elizabeth Eaton: One of the things she said was, "This is an existential threat and an existential reality for Black people and Brown people in the country, and it must be an essential threat for White people, too"

Rev. Paul Petersen: Spoke about how there needs to be more active on more things that need to get done. He said, “We can’t be satisfied with paint over plywood and slogans such as ‘Kenosha Strong,’”.

Rev. Kara Baylor: She is the pastor at Carthage college. She offered some suggestions specifically to white members. Rev. Kara Baylor says that people should educate themselves on race and racism, by joining peaceful protests and learning how systemic racism impacts policy — not all policies, but, for each person, “the thing you are called to do." She also spoke about, “Be open to a change of heart.”

“Only if we are honest about what is happening can we change the world. We are here to change the world, to change Kenosha, to change our hearts,”

Bishop Paul Erickson: Bishop Paul Erickson spoke about racism and how he also felt about it. He said, “Or, we can choose to recognize the fact that what we used to call normal has not only been killing our Black and Brown siblings. Normal has been hurting us all.” He mostly talked about what the community should do to do better and not just how to think about race and racism but to take responsibility for our actions and we ourselves should try to make things right. He talked about the “Path of Justice”, “Whites to educate themselves”, and “Kenosha must be different”.

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